Hope in the midst of Tragedy at Virginia Tech

It seems like all the news this week comes from Blacksburg, Virginia. This tragedy will haunt many for a long time to come. Our Campus Crusade for Christ ministry at Virginia Tech, nicknamed CRU, has been strongly impacted -- four of their students were victims. Another was a witness to the dormitory shooting. But there is hope peeking out from the dark clouds.

Tony Arnold, the Campus Crusade for Christ staff member at Virginia Tech, posted the following information on the staff website concerning a television interview with one of his CRU students ----

"Molly is a freshman that is involved in the ministry of Campus Crusade at Virginia Tech. She lived next door to the first victim of Monday's shootings.

Watch Molly's Story
You can now watch ABC's interview with Molly

http://abcnews.go.com/Video/playerIndex?id=3056249

It mentions her involvement with a Christian Bible-study group.
Some members of the film crews, producers and correspondents have been visibly moved by Molly’s story. I’ve received calls from New York and D.C. from producers who have been overwhelmed by the raw footage or the comments of those who participated in the interviews.
I've had some incredible conversations with media people."


Although the pain Molly is suffering is difficult to watch, her testimony is powerful. Let us pray that God will use this event to reach many more people with His Message. Campus Crusade has a website blog with many more testimonies and more information, as well as articles about why God allows such things to happen. Go to -- http://www.campuscrusadeforchrist.com/virginiatech/

Our CRU students at University of Miami are giving a free concert on their Campus this Saturday. Please pray that God will bring those students who need to hear His message, that their hearts and minds will be open, and that our students will see the opportunities and speak with boldness. God never wastes a bad experience -- He can use even a tragedy like this one at VT to draw people to Himself.

Thank you for your prayers.
God bless you all,
Lynn

Spring planting

Spring is Here! While some of you struggle with flooding and unseasonable snow, our team in southern Florida has been planting spiritual seeds, watering, weeding and watching them grow. Here are a few examples ---

Dean finished the 3-part series on the reliability of the Bible at two universities (Johnson and Wales, and Barry). I presented the second part of that series, on Archaeology and the Bible. Eric completed his three-part series on Christian Worldview to the U of Miami students. Then just before Easter I followed with a two-part talk on apologetics (the defense of the faith) and the proof for the resurrection.

The students showed great interest in these talks and some have started reading the book The Case for Easter by Lee Strobel. One student asked for more information to use in his liberal-leaning “biblical” archaeology class. Another wanted information on how Bible manuscripts are dated.

The Easter weekend was very busy. Saturday was the Miami Metro Breakfast and Beach event for our Campus Crusade students from various universities in southern Florida. We started with breakfast, a devotional and sharing at Key Biscayne Presbyterian Church, and then the students went to the local beach. About 50 students attended the breakfast and more showed up for the fun and fellowship at the beach.

Eric’s daughter Rebekah invited a Russian teacher and a Middle Eastern Muslim student from her college to come home with her for Easter weekend. They stayed with Eric’s family and enjoyed a big gathering for Easter dinner. The Muslim asked many questions about Christianity, watched the Jesus film in Arabic, attended the Miami Metro breakfast on Saturday and then Easter services on Sunday at Eric’s church. He continues to be interested in Jesus and Christianity, so please keep him in your prayers.

In early March, my church in Miami started a new church plant in a school near where I live in Homestead. While our attendance has averaged in the low to mid 300’s, for Easter services 490 attended, 10 received Christ and 8 recommitted their lives. One of my neighbors came and now wants to join a small group. The Homestead area has experienced a huge influx of people. Existing churches can’t handle the volume so there is a desperate need for more churches and outreaches.

“Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown." From the Parable of the Sower, Luke 8:8

In a Flash

Yesterday as I was driving to work, a white van crossed the centerline and headed straight for me. I slammed on the brakes and hit the horn. The driver swerved at the last moment and missed me.

My first reaction was to praise God! The events happened so quickly that I didn’t have much time to react. With a head-on crash there would have been a good chance of serious injury or death. But I felt like God’s protecting hands were around me.

My life did not flash before my eyes, but I was very conscious of my own mortality. Some day God will call me home – maybe suddenly, maybe not. But such events remind me of the importance of maintaining a close relationship with God.